Cut off his own head

A MAN brandished a knife at police and told them he would cut off his own head – then later threatened to attack officers by slitting their throats and biting their genitalia.

Officers had been called to a property at Delfryn in Llanelli on September 9, after receiving an emergency call from the partner of Joshua Dale Palethorpe.

Prosecuting, Carina Hughes told Swansea Crown Court that when they arrived his partner, told them Palethorpe had already thrown a hammer during a domestic confrontation.

She said: “The defendant was brandishing a large knife, and shouting to police he was going to slit their throats if they came into the property.

“She [his partner] was in the property with her two-year-old son.

“He said ‘Come in here and you will ******* regret it. I am going to cut my head off. Do not come in here.”

When told to put the knife down, he then threatened to cut the throats of officers if they came any closer.

The 24-year-old, of Heol Westfa, Llanelli, then backed into the room the two-year-old boy was in, prompting officers to warn him to put his knife down or he would be Tasered.

Carina Hughes added: “The Taser had the desired effect and he was handcuffed and removed from the scene.

“However, the aggressive behaviour continued, and he was threatening and spitting at officers. He threatened to bite the officers’ ***** off.”

Once in the back of a police van, he continued to spit both blood and saliva, which later required specialist cleaning.

In custody, a civilian worker observing Palethorpe went to see him in his cell to check on his welfare, but he spat into the face of the civilian worker through the hatch of the police cell, with saliva going into his victim’s face and mouth. The court was told he had 30 convictions for 55 offences.

Mitigating, James Hartson said Palethorpe had been under the influence of Valium, and added: “He accepts his conduct was quite appalling.

“He was motivated by jealousy. He has asked me to apologise to officers subjected to his appalling behaviour at the police station.”

Sentencing, Judge Keith Thomas said: “You had a knife in your hand and were spitting and threatening to slit their throats and to bite them, and cause any manner of harm.

“You were under the influence of drugs and motivated by jealousy which all provided a potent background for violence to occur.” Palethorpe had pleaded guilty to affray, damage to a police vehicle and a police officer.

He was sentenced to 16 months imprisonment for affray, and three months for his other offences, to run concurrently, making a total of 16 months.